Holes to Heaven
by Nikki-Wave
Summary: Nikole runs away, tired of her life and finds herself with captain Jack! R for later chapters. Capter 3 is up! Dude it took a long time to write... Antwho! PLease RR! Ineed the feedback!
1. the getaway

Nikole was standing at the window. Just like she did every day after she had heard the news. She wasn't really watching anything, just staring really. Out at the horizon. The sea. A comforting freedom of which she had no longer the privilege to enjoy. It continued like this day in day out. Her father whined at her in displeasure of what was happening and the way she felt. The baker insisted on trying to feed her more and more pastry until he had about worked up a full room of sweets that would have normally tempted her, and then only to have to throw them away. He muttered curses in French under his breath after the sixth day of his sweat-breaking baking and still none of it gone by Lady O'Brien. "No new sails" Nikole thought aloud. Eyes still glued to the horizon. She turned and sat down quietly on the bed. Reviewing over what had happened just a mere month ago. "Come now Nikole! He is a fine man! A wealthy man!" She glared with daggers at her father. How could he do this? She was only 19! She had her whole life a- head of her! She had to get married. The thought had merely just been that before. A thought. A word. Nothing more but what obviously lay in her future. But now the harshened reality of the confining vastness of the sentence was brought down on her with a verbal smack so hard her head nearly spun. She was to be wed to the count of Beckleson. The title sounded handsome for a man. Of good stature, and of honor. But the man of which carried the title was a despicable and vile character. Cheating and evil. His looks were not that of a wealthy man either. His facial hair grew thick and sparse on his misshapen-with- the- fat- of- greed on his face. His lips were dry and cracked, even in the most humid weather and his cheeks were pouchy and reddened from his constant drunkenness and the rage he let forth when he was so. He had once beaten a maid because she had brought him the wrong type of brandy. Through her cold and brief meetings with this man, she had acquired a strong dislike of the drink. Though she occasionally drank herself, being Irish.  
  
She had moved from the bed to her mirror and boudoir. She watched her now pale and thin complexion as she tried to contort her face into a smile, a shape it didn't recognize after the month of solitude and sadness. A burning slowly reeled inside of her. Her cheeks became hot and her breath quickened. She was not going to take this. She was the daughter of Katherine O' Flaherty. And she was not going to take this decision lying down (insert Nikka Costas-everybody got their something her from blue crush- lol) she pulled her hair back into a tight bun, restraining her deep red curls except for one which she let forward next to her lavender blue eyes. When her mother was living she had always told her how much they looked like the sea. She missed her mother. She sighed as she headed for the first time in a month out of her room, pushing the deep mahogany double doors and nearly frightening a maid half to death, only to find herself breathless. There he was .She swallowed hard. Drawing her skirts up to her in a bone- crushing grip. "Ahhh," he growled, baring his yellow teeth and wrinkling and distorting his already disgusting face into a cruel and greedy smile. He glared hungrily down at her breasts, which was an either deliberately unnoticed action by her father or he was just commonly blinded by his iron will to see that Nikole was to be married to this idiot. "So here's my beautiful wife to be." He reached a greasy hand up to touch her face. She didn't move a muscle. Except for the ones in her face, which she was squeezing and quivering in repulsiveness and incredible anger, her lips had been drawn back into a tight drawstring. She slapped his hand away with such force he fell to the floor. The house shook when his almighty girth landed hard. "Nikole!" Her father yelped, terrified. She interrupted him however.  
"How dare, how dare!" She screamed  
"How dare you touch me!" "You wicked piece of scum. Never see me again, or..." She violently reached for a sword that was hanging by his belt and shoved it to his throat "or I will rip every fiber from your body and feed it to the dogs praying that your soul goes straight to hell." Her teeth were bared and her face was now so close to his that she could smell the rankness of his body and the sweat of fear "If you ever." "Dare again." "I shall.." He squelched rasping for breath. As she had been moving closer to him letting herself get carried away with her anger, her sword had also. It was now poking into his throat and a small trickle of blood was gradually oozing from beneath her sword tip. She cocked her head; still bearing her teeth with an almost stone still face, eyebrows still sliding angrily down her skin. He rasped once more. She pulled the sword from his neck and wrenched it away Letting it clatter to the ground noisily echoing in the huge stone hallway, she pulled her skirts up and stepped over the trembling disgusting man. Her father let out a small whimper as she passed by, sounding much like a pathetic animal about to be killed. She almost let herself smile as she pounded out of the house. But as she reached the cobblestone walks of Tortuga, she could not contain her happiness. A shadowed figure, which had been watching from the darkened window smiled and walked away into the darkened streets outside, beads and rings glinting in the moonlight as he swayed away into the pub greeted by a cheer as an even bigger smile erupted on his tanned features.  
" Rum all a'round!" 


	2. the Beach

Hey! Thanx for the encouragement! This is chapter two! A little meeting in here with our favorite captain. Jack! Sadly, (sob *sniff* sob) I do not own any of these characters. Poop. Except of course for the ones I made. Enjoy and please R+R! Hey, and if u don't like anything, just tell me. I need the encouragement, not to mention constructive criticism. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nikole continued her storm through out the city. The street-lamps were now lit and the wenches were out doing business in the streets. She could hear the delighted squeals of the tramps as a particularly handsome customer would ask for their services. She walked and walked until her legs could bear her no more and Tortuga lay far behind her, and the dawn very near. She was now walking on the beach, barefooted and the remains of her dress thrashed and muddy. I t had been a long night and many men had tried to snatch a piece of her. After all, she wasn't that bad looking she thought as the sun was rising. She was close to 5'6 and she was thin. She was usually thin as it was, but now she was looking slightly unhealthy because of her slitude and refusance to eat. She had dark red hair which lay at about a little lower than her shoulders, and was extremely thick. And of coarse her blue and lavender eyes, and curvy pink lips. Her breasts were of normal size, but somehow seemed larger than they really were because of her body squelching corsets. She realised, since there was no o ne around for miles, she really didn't need to wear one any more.Her eyebrows raised in a giggle of freedom, and with some difficulty, she managed to wiggle out of the corset and stayed just in her long, see through undergarments. Suddenly she yawned. She had been walking all night and now that the sun was peaking over the rim of the ocean, she decided to sleep on the warm sand. She let loose her hair, no longer being able to keep it in the bun which she had done in such anger that it had pulled painfully on her scalp and had remained that way for so long that her head felt bruised. She curled into a ball on the ground and nuzzled her face in her hair, drifting off to sleep within a matter of moments, lulling herself with the oceans lullaby of sleep. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Oi!, Jack! Where ye be goin?" a rough pirate voice heavy with rum and a deep British accent. Jack wheeled around, rum bottle still swaying in his hand as he looked dazed for his caller, his eyebrows raised in questioning. They lowered as he found himself face to face with is first mate, Gibbs. "Oh, sorry. Just for a walk, you know." he staggered a bit, "to walk off the rum." "alright," Gibbs said, "but just 'member to be back at the Pearl by noon. We'll be needin' to leave by then." Jack nodded in understanding, nearly knocking himself over when a man stumbled into him, also drunk. Jack set off, meandering for the shore- line, peeling off his boots and setting them underneath a palm tree, as he continued to stagger down the sand. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nikole woke just soon enough to be hit in the head with a shovel. Her head spun and stars winked in front of her eyes. The shovel hit again, this time harder on the other side of her face. She opened her eyes to see a seething man in front of her, with very disturbingly familiar pouchy cheeks. It was the count of Beckleson! Hey eyes popped out of her head just in time to be swung at and hit by the shovel again. It clanged against her head throwing her to the left, showing the stars again. A faint ringing was all she could hear now. The Count swung all his body weight on to her, nearly knocking her wind out. He sat on top of her midsection with each of his legs resting on either side of her. She just trembled, trembled and waited. He was breathing heavily from all the effort it had taken to whack her and roll her to the ground.  
" So." He seethed. "So" he said again. She could feel his hot putrid breath on her body, in her nose, as though he was somehow infecting her. She caught her breath in her throat, trying not to breath it in. He looked at her almost naked body with such a longing and lust that she wished she could throw him off of her right now if she had the strength, true she did attempt, but he was so heavy all she did was make herself more tired.  
"Get off" she weakly commanded.  
"No." he hissed. " I am the man here I will do the ordering, you. you." his lust had quickly turned to anger. Now Nikole was even more terrified than before. He reached several times for his pistol, then grumbled, and put it away. She finaly got the courage to speak to him and try to encourage him to get off her legs because her lower body was going numb.  
"Please just get off of me and then we can-" SMACK! Half of her face was now almost as numb with pain as her legs " You will speak when spoken to! You Whore! How could you do that you deserve nothing! NOTHING! I taking you as my bride was a most definite mistake. But the rewards will be most definitely pleasing." He eyed her up and down greedily once more. She shivered in repulse.  
"Say you love me."  
  
"No." she spat  
  
"Say you love me!" He raised a threatening hand once more; teeth bared and anger flaring in his eyes.  
  
"NO!" she screamed "Never!" The hand came down again. But this time it did not stop after one blow. It continued again, and again. She screamed louder and louder until her throat was so painful all the came out was hoarse empty rasps, as slaps became punches, trying to yell for help until he suddenly stopped. She could feel his struggling body now moving off of her and a few muffled voices. She could no longer see; her face had become so swollen. Blood was fresh on her upper body, both from the punches and the rubbing of the coarse material on his pants and her bare shoulder skin, which had now become a raw, bloody skid-mark. She knew no more as a blissful silence over took her and she felt someone pick her up.  
  
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Jack was lowly meandering across the beach. It was no longer dawn any more and it must have been close to ten o'clock. He stood for a moment and watched the waves come rolling in, listening to the tropical birds songs'. He was really quite far from Tortuga now, he thought. Looking down at the sand, he noticed footprints. Two sets of them, first a smaller daintier pair in heeled shoes, which wee quite rubbed out, and a larger more oaf- like pair. He stared at them quizzically for a few moments before deciding, on a whim, that just for the hell of it he would follow them. He took off at a run, sure that he didn't really have that much time anymore, he had to get back to the dock to get back to the Pearl, and if he wanted to check this out he better do it fast. As he was crossing dune after dune of the sand a new sound reached his ears. Screaming. A Woman screaming. His eyes shot up at the realization of what might be going on and he whipped his body forward letting out a worried,  
"Bloody hell."  
  
As he grew nearer to the screaming he also heard the muffled "Guwaff, Guwaff" of laughter. As e peaked over the next dune, he saw a scene he would never forget, as if it were burned there by a cruel and burning branding iron: the largest most disgusting man he had ever scene beating a red headed woman to a bloody pulp. His eyes shot open even further to reveal his Kohl rimmed eyes to be like dinner plates. Think jack think! What can you do here that wouldn't be so bloody stupid as to have the girl killed? He swallowed hard, well at least from beating up her corpse anymore than it was so.  
"OI! You! What do you think you're doing mate!?" The punching maniac did not stop or even turn to face Jack.  
"OI!! Can you hear me mate? Or are you're ears to filled with nothing?" This got the mans att3ention. He wheeled around with surprising speed, drool and sweat flecking off of his face. He was foaming at the mouth, and his eyes had a mad roll to them. He was also breathing quite heavily and his knuckles were bloody from the continuous punching.  
" What business is it of ye whats I be doing with my time?" the man snarled.  
" I'm not but a humbled pirate sir, but, I do object to brutal women beating and would ask you to cease and desists this unruly behavior at once. Such a -" he stumbled at the word ,"fine" being such an unfitting word, "fine, gentleman should not take part in such degrading behavior. Savvy?" the man just stared back at him, eyes unblinking and slightly glazed. "Or there will be consequences mate." Jack fingered his sword lovingly, cocky smile playing on his face making his gold teeth wink in the sun. Still the man just watched the Jack, and then after what felt like an eternity, he spoke,  
"Whos are you sir to be ordering me around like a common servant?" the man had now stood up and Jack glanced down at the girl to make sure she was still breathing. And, indeed she was, but very shallow. Jacks eyes snapped back up to the man. This was the question he had been waiting for. His toothy smile widened even more but the hardness of his eyes remained. He knew the reaction to the answer of this question very well and no matter how many times he watched it, it never got old, just better and better each time.  
" I mate, am Captain Jack Sparrow, Captain of the Black Pearl." He drew his sword as the man watched in horror, and drew himself up to the proper fighting stance.  
"Savvy?" The man just stood, swaying slightly on the spot. Jack could see the gears working slowly under his fat balding head. He looked at first confused , and then angry. His eye-brows furrowed together and he yelled.  
"ARRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!!! Bloody Pirate!!" he lunged for Jack and Jack stepped aside, leading to the falling of the Count. Jack quickly picked up the shovel and clanged him on the head, making an all-mighty C-LL-L-L-Ang! The man snored loudly and a string of drool cold be seen seeping out of his mouth onto the sand. Jack had successfully knocked him out-cold. For when Jack rolled him over he did nothing except seep on, snoring more loud and terrible. Jack Grimaced in a disgusted manner and, with a lot of effort, rolled the man over so he would not awaken the dead with his ceaseless noisemaking. Jack only hoped he did not inhale the sand, no, wait, maybe he did. A large lump could now be seen underneath his hair where Jack had hit him.  
  
Jack walked over to the bloodied woman and sighed with empathy and sadness. He bent over her and laid an ear on her chest to see if she was still breathing. She was and her heart rate seemed normal too. He slid with one finger her soaked hair across her face and out of the way to survey the damage. He could tell now that she would be O.K., bruised and cut up for a while, but no serious scarring. One cut on her cheek looked quite serious though. He stood up resting his hands on his hips. He was going to have to do something with her. He couldn't just leave her here, could he? No. Definetly not he thought. When the man woke up he would surely try to kill her again. And it was obvious that she needed medical attention, but the doctors in Tortuga were too expensive and would take too long. So what was he going to do? He would take her onto the Black Pearl. And then take her to Port Royal where she could stay away from that idiot. The doctor aboard the ship would help her when they got there. So it was decided that Nikole would stay. He picked her up lightly surprised at how light she was, and decided to run back to the docks, being short for time now.  
  
Little did he know at the time that she would become so much more to him and every one else she met than just a drifter. She would in time touch his life so deeply that he would not know what life was before he met her. But of coarse he didn't know this as he bounded across the dunes, humming a tune as the waves crashes to his left, ready to return to the Pearl.  
  
"Yo, Ho, Yo, Ho, a pirates life for me."  
  
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So. What did ya think of that?  
  
Please tell me! My next chappie will come up soon. I promise;-) So please R+R! I need info and reveiws! Thanx a bunch! 


	3. The Ship

Omg! Thank you guys (ahem) the two of you at least that actually reviewed my story! It was totally encouraging! Well here's chapter three.  
  
Sadly again, I must state that I do not own any of any of the characters, pooey. *Hysterical crying in the background* only basically the ones you don't know are mine. So ya! Please R+R! I need the feedback! Pleazzzzzzz... I need it.. (o_O) and if u don't like it, no flames plz! Jack and Nikole meet (really) in this chapter!  
  
OK here's chapter 3!  
  
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The sun was now high above the heads of the crew of the Pearl, and Jack was still nowhere to be found. Gibbs looked around the docks once more, cursing under his breath. "That damned boy.never goin' ta be on time fer anything" he muttered under his breath as he stumbled about the cargo on the main docks below. The waves were rolling and the wind had picked up, which among the scattered newspaper, had also picked up the spirits of the crew, whilst Jacks were plummeting as his legs cramped, and cramped again with the never ending running over the dunes with the extra weight. Though he had, it wasn't that much extra, and she surely wasn't something sore for the eyes. She looked to be Irish and around the age between 18 and 20. She had long deep red hair and was very thin, not exactly his type but beautiful none the less. She also didn't seem to be a wench, but not quite an aristocrat. He finally realized that he recognized her! It was the woman in the window! Who had threatened the fat oaf! Though it was so hard to recognize her, through her bruised and broken body. He had been wondering what had happened to her all night. There was something about her. He furrowed his brow as his eyes came to her wounds. Through the hour that he had been flat out running, most of the bleeding had stopped, but it was now swelling and turning all the colors of the rainbow. She was no longer stretched away from him, but curled up to his chest. She smelled like lilacs. He liked it, and enjoyed the warmth of her even in the sweltering heat of the day. It wasn't the kind of heat warmth. something different- but being still slightly drunk still and extremely fatigued, he wasn't aware of his own intuition yet.  
At quarter to 12, he ran breathless into Tortuga, somehow managing to pull his strength together to sprint to the full length of the dock, which ended up a large mistake being that he had forgotten his boots by the palm tree, so he was full out sprinting, with an unknown woman in his arms and no shoes when he reached the ship. To, his surprise, the crew was there and had done everything to prepare the ship and he didn't need to fully instruct them on appropriate manner of weighing anchor. Though when up the plank, he was met by the questioning stares of the men aboard. They obviously had planned this, to be lined up, ready to give Jack the full meaning of the word being on time, but now were taken aback by the circumstances of which they found their captain. He dropped the woman, so that she rolled to his feet, and bent over breathing hard, showed a finger to his crew, telling them to be patient.  
" wait.just.a.minute.." He breathed  
"I need. to. catch.me.breath." the crew looked nervously from one to another and then one or two ran to the edge to see if anyone was chasing him. Gibbs seemed on several occasions to want to say something, and kept opening his mouth and then closing it. Jack, then turning his head up from his bent over status to reveal nothing but the toothiest of smiles. He began to laugh, making his assorted odds and ends on his dreadlocks waggle and sway uncertainly. Next, Gibbs who had been the most surely of the crew, arms still crossed over his chest began laughing too. Before anyone had any better ideas, the whole crew was laughing. All except the still and pale unconscious woman on the deck.  
  
When the laughter had finally died down except from the odd titter in the midst, Gibbs returning to his serious stature asked loudly enough for the whole crew to hear,  
"Well, Jack, who be she then? Another one of yeas.?" he questioned.  
"No. Most definitely not. He said pouching out his lips, staggering slightly.  
" I found her being beat to a bloody pulp by what I assume was her fiancée. I rescued her an' conked him one on the head." The crew was just staring now, even them, the probably worst of the pirate would never try to hurt a woman, especially a lass like that. Jack smiled inside as he watched their reactions, but breathed heavily and then continued with his story.  
"An' I wouldn't just leave the poor soul there. He would made sure she was dead for sure when he woke up. An' the doctors in Tortuga were much to expensive. An' I had a feeling that she wouldn't want to be found anyways. She was lucky I came along." Jack had quietly drifted off into his own thoughts and mumblings when a loud "ahem" from the ranks of the crowd brought him sharply back to the ship.  
"So, as your captain, I've decided to bring the young lass here, get her fixed up by Melvson-" he gave a quick nod to the ships doctor who curtly nodded back, "- and then leave her in 5 days when we reach Port Royal" the crew was politely baffled as they all nodded their agreement with his decision. Nikole began mumbling in her sleep and the crews attention turned to her. She rolled into a small ball and slept on. Her face was now contorting as though in agony and the doctor, as if prodded from behind, dashed over and picked her up, bringing her down into the darkened lower decks, followed by the smallest member of the crew, Daniel, who was barely 7, and had been picked up from the ravages from a village that had been lit a fire by the barbarians. Jack stood up to his full height. The crew just stood, and a fair few of them began to chat amongst themselves. This displeased the captain. He frowned slightly and twiddled his goatee ends into fine points.  
"Alright you scabrous dogs! Get to work! This is a ship were trying to run, not a lounge deck! Come on!" the crew immediately snapped to attention and began, flustered, running around to their stations, giving "Aye captain!" and occasionally running into one another and causing a sort of traffic jam on the deck. Jack smiled and turned to Gibbs who was also smiling.  
"Jack me mate!" he pulled Jack into a hug.  
" Its good to be back at sea" Jack smiled even wider and replied  
"Aye, that it is mate, that it is." Gibbs , probably better than anyone, knew of Jacks love for the sea. He did not be come a Pirate to pillage and to steal or to get many a women's pleasurable company, though it was an added bonus. He was a pirate because it was freedom. The sea would always be Jacks first love. The glazed content look in his eyes told the whole story. He could go where he wanted, do what he pleased, and all at sea, which is what he really wanted . Jack smirked happily to himself turning the wheel and watching the compass which didn't point north. Whipping around quickly to Gibbs, who was quite startled to be brought out of his thinking, and said,  
"Gibbs, hold the wheel, I thinks I am going down to see the lass and how she's doing."  
"Aye Captain!"  
  
Jack gave a final smile and headed down to the tiny infirmary. The steps creaked with age and still he smiled. The walls were worn from the constant rubbing of hands and the small lamps were grimy from years of uncleaning, giving a dim, warm light. He pushed the door open to see the doctor, finishing up a stitch in her neck, which had been evidently cut from the blade of the shovel. Daniel sat in a corner peeking out from behind his fingers, as Nikole lay topless due to the continuation of cuts and lacerations down her upper body. Jacks eyes widened and then snapped away at the sight of her breasts. It was not polite to look at a complete strangers breasts, though they did look quite nice. He stood behind the doctor and watched the last of the stitch go through. He had cleaned her up very well and the swelling in her face had gone down a lot, leaving only black and purple blotches and the odd cut or scrape. The only serious ones lay on her head and neck. They would probably scar. But the one on the neck was relatively low down, so not the whole world would see. Actually it was more on her collarbone than on her neck, he thought as he studied the doctors careful work.  
"Very good. You did and excellent job"  
"Thanks be ta ye cap'n" He replied roughly " If ye had brought her but naught a moment later she would have been gone." He then pointed to a cut which Jack hadn't noticed which lay about her temple and stretched up to the top of her head.  
"She would have surely bleed to death." Jack whispered. Thanking God for him having the luck to have been able to find her. He might've been a pirate but that doesn't mean that he didn't like to help. Jacks eyes searched about the room as an all to familiar smell reached his nose. His eyes finally lay on a fresh bottle of rum, the best in all Tortuga, HALF GONE.  
" What's this then? Have you been into the rum Doctor?" An annoyed smile played on Jacks features, he knew the doctor liked to drink, but using the best rum for a pick-me-up was not looked upon with kind eyes by the captain. It was rum, not some cheap drink from a party. Rum. The doctor laughed and replied,  
"No, Jack. I not be into ye rum." He chuckled.  
" I had to use it to clean her wounds and there was naught another type of alcohol on the ship. I had to tell young Daniel here to go an' fetch some from the kitchens." Jack smiled and said,  
"Well, if ye be done with this, I think I'll just be leaving then!" He picked up the rum bottle and tipped his hat, stepping out into the dark hallway, and then remembering what he had forgot to say, he stepped back into the infirmary and asked the doctor,  
" Has she woken up yet?" The man looked down at the table for a long time before turning to face the captain.  
"Aye, cap'n. She did." He said softly. Jack felt his pulse quicken with the sudden fear that something was wrong from the way he was speaking.  
"Well? What did she say?" he quipped.  
" I don't know sir, you see, it was mostly in Gaelic. She was so frightened! An' she stood righ' up in bed an' started yelpin' 'n Irish. Alls that I could make sense of was her name."  
"Well? What was it?" Jack snipped, anxious for unknown reasons, both to himself and every one else.  
"She said her name was Nikole. She was mighty afraid of something an' then I told her we was on a ship and she got all woozy and fainted again. I don' know much else sir, so beg yer pardon" Jack stood and thought for a moment, eyebrows furrowed. Stroking his goatee he finally said;  
"When she wakes up, send her to my quarters or wherever I am. I want to speak to her." The doctor looked around in unsureness, but trusting the captain, he nodded and gave a small smile.  
"Aye Cap'n." Jack turned to leave,  
"Oh and Cap'n?" Jack wheeled, looking around  
"Take Daniel with you and get some breeches and a top for our young lady here, I had to rip her dress to get her out of it." Jack nodded responsibly and took Daniel by the hand up to his quarters. He and Daniel had a close relation ship. He was the one who had rescued the lad from the burning remnants of the town and he had been like a son to him ever since. Daniel told him how he had helped bring up the anchors and that he was afraid the lady was dead. Jack listened intently, genuinely interested in what the boy was saying. He had always liked children, they always seemed to give the best answers, without all the lying and cover- ups. And their innocence was incomparable.  
Jack reached into his chest of drawers and gave a pair of dark-brown breeches and a white top to Daniel as he was finishing up with his story of seeing a pod of dolphins. Daniel was very smart and knew the names of most of the sea creatures he saw. He liked to learn and Jack tried to spend as much time with him teaching.  
"There ya go mate! Now give that to the Doctor and were all set!'  
" Jack, d'you think that Nikole will like me?" he questioned honestly  
"Of coarse Daniel! Every body likes you." And of coarse this was completely true. The crew spoiled him rotten. But Daniel always wanted to help, at everything he could. He once almost lost a finger trying to help the cook cut potatoes. He wasn't allowed in the kitchens after that.  
" Oh!" he said brightly, pink appearing on his cheeks.  
"Why?" Jack asked, kneeling down to be eye-level with the boy.  
"Cause she looks like my mummy!" and with that, he skipped off, leaving Jack with a whole new box of thoughts, unopened and fresh.  
  
The rest of the day passed slowly without any particularly remarkable things to note. It went smooth, normal, as it were possible when out at sea. But the smell of a storm was in the air, even though the sky was cloudless and blue as far as the eye could see, but the crew dined indoors bearing the heat as all of them were tense with the feeling of a storm. The only sounds that could be heard in the mess hall were the gentle clinking of forks and knives. Tom and Bill were even quiet, who were usually the life of the table along with Captain Jack, who usually got dragged into telling some outrageous tale or another which he never seemed to run out of. But tonight was different. There was no rum or boisterous talking and all seemed ready to run to their stations at the tiniest whisper. But there was no need to, and the storm never came, or, at least, not yet.  
When supper was over jack decided to retire to his room early as he needed a good nights sleep and Nikole would be there, he needed to talk to her.  
  
When he reached the room, a candle or two was lit, but there was no stirring in the room. The woman was on top of Jacks bed, sleeping soundlessly, wearing mens breeches and a top. Jack swayed over to her, kneeling beside the bed, deciding to prod her awake.  
"Love? Love, can you hear me?" he poked her once. Nothing happened. He pushed her hair off of her face, which now the swelling had gone down a lot in, and whispered, a bit louder this time  
"Love? Come on love, wake up." He shook her gently. She spoke in her sleep and turned over.  
"Bloody hell woman, you sleep like a brick." Jack mumbled, walking around to the other side of the bed. He bent down again, this time closer to her face than before.  
"Love."  
  
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Nikole woke up, in pain, but woke up and to the most beautiful brown eyes she had ever seen. They were just there in-front of her, and there was also a soft, coaxing voice too. Dangling beads surrounded the face, along with coins and other sorts of medallions. She smiled, which hurt her face terribly and then she remembered; all that had happened. I t was like if a damn had broke. Shovel. Fists. Pain. Loneliness. Anger. Fear. Her eyes shot open and she swung hard at the face in-front of her, but jack, caught unawares, but still spry, danced out of her reach, just not far enough. Swack!  
" Bloody hell woman!" Jack cursed. She had missed his face and ended up just getting the nose, punching hard to one side and clipping it with enough force that now he was bleeding quite heavily.  
"Who are you ?!" She screamed, now standing on top of the bed staggering slightly fists raised at Jack. She was thrashing around wildly, clearly terrified.  
"Where am I? Come on now! Answer me questions!" Jack looked unbelievingly, yet impressed at his young assailant. No one had ever punched him that hard before.  
" I, lass, am Captain Jack Sparrow, and you aboard the Black Pearl, and we are heading to Port Royal.." he managed to speak quite clear, though blood was pouring out of his nose. He pinched the bridge of it and tilted his head back. She took and astonished breath and a glassy look slid over her eyes. A tear squeezed it self out and ran down her cheek, mouth hanging open, raised fists now limp against her sides, as she dropped to her knees on the bed.  
"Wh. where is the Count?" she asked weakly, still breathless as though she had been heavily winded.  
" I fought that fat oaf off of you because he was beating you to a bloody pulp! I saved you! And what's the thanks I gets? A bloody nose!"  
" You saved me?" she asked breathless. Jack said nothing, but looked guiltily around the room.  
" A pirate! A bloody pirate saved me life!" she was now laughing incredulously. A smile split across her sore face, no matter how much it hurt.  
" It's not funny!" Jack said indignantly  
" I wasn't going to let you get killed!" he was now very annoyed. How could she make fun of the man who had saved her from being beat to death? She had now stopped laughing and was just watching Jack. He was very handsome. He was tanned a deep brown from being in the sun for so long, and was evidently wiry, but muscular. He seemed to be of decent character and she like that. But she could not get over his eyes, those chocolate brown depths. And truth be told, nor could he. Since the moment she opened her blue-violet masses he had been captivated. He wouldn't have been able to have dodged that punch to save his life with those eyes there. So they just stood there, looking at one another for what seemed like and eternity. She cocked her head reviewing over his features, dreadlocks, I hadn't noticed them. She watched the beads and gold glint in the wavering candle light. Along with his gold tooth that could just be seen underneath his half open mouth. He had obviously tried to say something but was caught in her face. He finally threw off his open mouth. Captain Jack does not do such a thing. He would never fall in. of coarse not. He barely knew her! She was certainly not this type anyways. But still, she was very beautiful, and certainly headstrong. But no, not for him. Never.  
  
" Lass, sit down" She was still kneeling on his bed, but now looking around the room. Her eyes snapped back to him.  
"What's your name?" She swallowed and slowly spoke  
" My name is Nikole O'Brien, I am 19 years old." The name rolled off her tongue beautifully with her slightly accented voice.  
" I need you to tell me why exactly I found you like that, on the beach." He paused and neither of them said anything. "Who was he?" Jack continued gentler  
" What did he have against you?" Jack moved down to sit next to her on the bed. Soon enough after a fair few minutes of coaxing, the entire story came pouring out. How her mother had died. How she was left with her father. How he had tried to marry her to that completely evil man. And how she had threatened him and ran away to the beach. When she reached the part about the threatening, Jack let out a laugh. She stared at him, eyes wide with confusion,  
"What was that about? It was the bravest thing I had ever done!" Jack went on to explain that he had seen it all from the window because he was trying to sneak in to pilfer some shillings from a table he had seen. She listened with a slightly amused look on her face. She was very alive, and yet so dead. Jack understood. Her whole life had just been turned upside down, and she was weary, very weary. There was no sparkle in her eyes just tiredness, though it definitely did not make them less beautiful. She laughed shyly, and then started to cry steadily and quietly. Jack was off on one of his wanderings of the mouth and was just saying in disbelief how her father could have done that, when he noticed that she was crying. He gently reached over to her, pulling her to him.  
"Oh love, everything will be alrigh'. I promise" And indeed he meant it. Everything heals with time, and a few days at sea would do her good. He took her up in his warm embrace as she sobbed harder than she could ever remember crying. Soon enough she was asleep and both of them were stretched out on the bed lying side by side. Maybe this could go somewhere Jack thought, he looked over at her sleeping body, watching her breath in and out so peacefully, then again, maybe not. He ran his fingers through her hair, stroking the soft curls as she slept on. He moved closer so that his body was spooning her tiny frame. She still smelled like Lilacs. And he fell asleep dreaming of what else she had been through. For he knew that there was definitely something missing. Something she was hiding. But his thoughts left him as he drifted off to sleep with the smells of a lilac field lulling him to sleep.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~ So there! That was my 3rd chapter!] I am so happy! That took so long. I think I will go to sleep now. So tired. But just remember to REVIEW!!!! Chapter fours gonna be short but cool. Plzzzzz.. I tell you now, I need the reviews!! 


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